MYTH: Illegal immigrants are “by definition” criminals.
“Being illegally present in the U.S. has always been a civil, not criminal, violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act, and subsequent deportation and associated administrative processes are civil proceedings.” (Congressional Research Service, “Immigration Enforcement Within the United States.” April 2006)
In Sept. 2007, former presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani said on The Glenn Beck Program, “Glenn, it’s not a crime. I know that’s very hard for people to understand, but it’s not a federal crime…In fact, when you throw an immigrant out of the country, it’s not a criminal proceeding. It’s a civil proceeding.”